How Art Can Be Thought: New Book by Allan deSouza

Allan deSouza lecturing on aesthetics, authenticity, and change at UC Berkeley

Allan deSouza’s new book on art pedagogy, “How Art can be Thought” inspires engaged dialog about the role of art as a force of renewal, memory, identity and community. What terms do we use to describe and evaluate art, and how do we judge if art is good, and if it is for the social good? In How Art Can Be Thought Allan deSouza investigates such questions and the popular terminology through which art is discussed, valued, and taught. Adapting art viewing to contemporary demands within a rapidly changing world, deSouza outlines how art functions as politicized culture within a global industry. In addition to offering new pedagogical strategies for MFA programs and the training of artists, he provides an extensive analytical glossary of some of the most common terms used to discuss art while focusing on their current and changing usage. He also shows how these terms may be crafted to new artistic and social practices, particularly in what it means to decolonize the places of display and learning. DeSouza's work will be invaluable to the casual gallery visitor and the arts professional alike, to all those who regularly look at, think about, and make art—especially art students and faculty, artists, art critics, and curators.

Allan deSouza is Associate Professor and Chair of Art Practice at the University of California, Berkeley. His work has been shown nationally and internationally, including at the Phillips Collection, the Whitney Museum, the Centre Pompidou, the National Museum of African Art, and the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.